Texas Public Schools Earn "F" on Evolution Education

We warned repeatedly during the recent
debate over science curriculum standards that Texas was in danger of
falling behind the rest of the nation in science education. Now a new
study to be published in the journal Evolution: Education and Outreach confirms our warnings.

The study notes that nationally “the treatment of biological
evolution in state science standards has improved dramatically over the
last ten years.” It gives 40 states (including the District of
Columbia) satisfactory grades for the treatment of evolution in their
public school science standards, as opposed to only 31 in Lawrence S.
Lerner’s 2000 study Good Science, Bad Science, which was conducted for the Fordham Foundation.

While Texas was falling further behind the other states, states like
Kansas and Florida were vaulting ahead, going from grades of “F” to “A”
in the study. Both states have recently moved to strengthen instruction
on evolution in their public school science classrooms.

Why does this matter? Suppose a Texas high school student wants to
study science at one of the nation’s top universities. How do you
suppose the admissions panel at that university will score the
student’s qualifications compared to those of students from states that
teach sound science? In addition, entrepreneurs and other
businesspeople testified at State Board of Education hearings that they
would be reluctant to expand their companies or move them to states
that provide a substandard education in science.